Alternate Reality
by QueenBlueshimmer
Summary: Set in an alternate universe in which Monika decides not to delete the character files until after the festival, she accidentally sets in motion event that could result in the happy ending everyone deserves, as well as change the fate of someone who was never meant to be apart of the game at all.
1. Prologue

"Hmm…I wonder…"

Static buzzed through the air as a small black box opened up and hung in the air. Displayed within it were a collection of small white letters. In the girl's vision, the world around her dissolved into numbers and letters and a never-ending darkness. Pushing past the nonsense to the specific place she wanted, she drove deeper into the words and arrived in a void with only four small words hanging in the blackness. These were the _character files_ , a collection of letters, numbers, and images that made up the people she called her friends. Her consciousness hovered over the decision as she pondered whether or not to open the little menu of options that could be produced from each one and hit the unthinkable button.

It would almost be too easy to fix the problems these small collections of letters, numbers, and images caused. A simple _delete_ and her worries about obtaining the heart of her beloved would disappear. However, it came with risks, as well as the danger of making her beloved angry.

"Not today." She decided with a flick of her long, brown ponytail. "The script is too fragile to mess with before the festival, when everything becomes more solid." She turned to leave the character file, and as she did, she clipped a button off to the side with her arm. Ignoring it, she let the world fade back in around her, not noticing what the button read, or the new file that popped into the _character files_ after it was pressed.

And with that, the script changed, and with it the future of the virtual world.


	2. The Finale of Normalcy

The day of the festival arrived. A tangible excitement permeated the air, infecting M.C. He locked his door behind him and stepped out onto the sidewalk, ready to begin the walk to school. But when he got there he frowned. His best friend, Sayori, was nowhere in sight.

M.C. waited a few minutes, feeling his impatience grow. Along with it came a twinge of nervousness as he recalled the events of the night before.

Telling Sayori she would always be his dearest friend.

Her screams as she crouched on the ground, clutching her head.

The expression on her face as she gave him a faked smile and hurried home.

If he was nervous before, the recollection of those events made him downright anxious. He tapped his foot, trying to control the panic growing in his chest. Just as he was about to give up and go to school on his own, a voice stopped him.

"Sorry! I overslept again!" The sight of Sayori's light pink hair made M.C. release a breath he hadn't known he was holding. Sayori practically flew onto the sidewalk and stopped beside him. "I hope I didn't make you wait too long!"

He shook his head, seeing the dark clouds already starting to close over her eyes. "Nah, I overslept too. Natsuki and I worked for so long, I had nightmares about giant cupcakes." He laughed and Sayori exhaled in relief. "Good, I don't wanna be a burden." "I told you, you're not." They began walking to school, making light conversation.

As the school came into view, Sayori bounced up and down with excitement. "The festival is going to be so much fun! I can't wait to hear everyone's poems!" M.C. nodded, although he'd only found a poem on the internet, and probably was in for embarrassment when the other members were better than what he had down. Sighing, he entered the school building and made his way to the clubroom, listening to Sayori talking about what she planned to do at the festival. He knew, based on what she'd told him, that this enthusiasm was probably faked. He listened anyway, set on proving that she wasn't the burden she thought she was.

Monika sat at the front desk, arranging pamphlets into neat piled to be handed out to visitors. She looked up and waved as they entered, giving M.C. a smile that made his stomach do backflips. He smiled back and turned to where Yuri was finishing a banner made to look like a sunset. She was finishing up the lettering, and had already set up the rest of her mood-making items.

Sayori raced over to where Monika was and the two began discussing matters for the festival performance. M.C. stood nervously at the door, trying to think of a way to aid the preparations. Luckily, the answer came in the form of pink pigtails.

"Here, take these before I drop them!" Natsuki shoved a tray of cupcakes into his hands. She walked into the room balancing two more trays, and set them down on an empty desk. She scanned them for any signs of damage, and then gestured for him to place his tray with the others.

"There we go! Now we'll have people flocking in here!" Natsuki grinned gloatingly, hands on her hips. Yuri looked up and smiled, although she seemed a bit less sure of that. "Yes, everything is wonderful." She stood up and hefted her banner. "Would you mind helping me with this, M.C.?"

M.C. grabbed a side of the banner and they carried it to the hall. Yuri pulled a stepladder closer to the door and gestured him over to it. "We need to hand it above the door. Use these." She dropped one corner of the banner to take a package of wall tacks from her pocket. He took them and climbed the ladder, placing a piece of cement on the wall.

When they were done, both stood back from the doorway, looking at the sign. "You did a great job on this Yuri." He grinned at her. Yuri startled and looked away, blushing. "I-I didn't do much…." Still blushing, she hurried into the classroom. M.C. followed her inside. Monika and Sayori had placed the pamphlets on a desk to one corner, and a table held Natuski's cupcakes. The front of the room was cleared to serve as a sort of stage, and a scattering of desks served as seats. Incense burners wafted sweet-smelling smoke throughout the room, giving it a heading atmosphere.

"It's amazing how much work can be done in such a short time, isn't it?" Monika appeared beside him, smiling. M.C. nodded, sharing the sentiment. He couldn't believe they'd managed to do all of this is just a weekend.

Before he'd had time to process this thought, an announcement blared through the intercom.

"The festival activities may now commence! Please adhere to the pre-stated rules and school policies! Please enjoy this event!"

That announcement marked the last day the club was the same as it always had been. It also marked the day that _that person_ joined the Literature Club.


	3. Enter: Misaki

As expected, the Literature Club was not immediately flooded, but as the minutes passed people began to trickle into the room like water into a sink. Yuri stood off to one side as Monika announced the open poetry readings. She nervously waited her turn as Sayori emerged at the front of the room and took a breath. She began to read, her soft voice delivering the dark words with an eerie kind of lilt. By the time she was finished, the entire room had quieted to listen.

Next, Monika read her poem. Her voice and stature oozed confidence as she said each line, the syllables swirling sharply through the room. Natuski was next in line, and read her poem off with only the slightest tremble to her voice. While the poem was much too simple and blunt for Yuri's tastes, she had to admit that it sounded good out loud. As her turn came, Yuri wrung her hands together, knees shaking as she strode to the front of the room. A few people where still watching, but most had turned away.

What if they didn't like it?

Pushing back her self-consciousness, Yuri straightened her page out in front of her. Drawing in a large breath of air, she began to deliver the lines. As she continued, she felt herself straighten and her voice stop shaking. When she finished, she looked over the slightly awe-struck faces in the audience.

Oh my god, she'd done it! And they'd _liked_ it!

Buzzing with elation, she left the front of the room. M.C. walked up to take his turn, reading out a poem that Yuri instantly recognized as not his. His voice didn't have any overly exciting qualities, but in itself sounded alright. As he returned to Sayori's side, she saw him breathe a sigh of relief. She nearly laughed at the familiarity of it.

With all the members done, Monika announced that people from the audience could now join in if they desired. Everyone in the room began to nervously trade glances, shifting away from the front of the room. It looked as if no one was going to be reading anytime soon.

"Well that's a bit pathetic." A voice said quietly, louder than usual due to the uncomfortable silence. Yuri turned along with several others to see a girl in the doorway. She seemed to inch backwards slightly at the stares, but shook it off and slowly approached the front of the crowd. Taking out a small black cellphone, she began scrolling until she presumably reached her poem.

Clearing her throat, she straightened her shoulders and began to read. Her voice raised in volume after the first line, and whatever nervousness she had previously felt seemed to disappear. Yuri felt herself leaning forward to catch every word of the poem. She placed the style somewhere between Sayori's and Monika's, an oddly pleasant mix of straightforward words and strange metaphors. As she finished, Yuri exhaled in surprise.

Finished, the girl stepped back into the crowd. Yuri saw Monika rushing over to her, a bewildered expression on her face. Sayori, M.C., and Natuski trailed after her, looking excited. Yuri fell in line with Monika, glancing at her questioningly. "Who was that?" Monika shook her head, still pushing through people. "I have no idea, but I'm going to ask her to join our club." Sayori gave a cheer, bouncing up and down excitedly. "A new member would be nice…" Natsuki muttered.

They finally reached her at the back of the room. She sat on top of a desk, eating a blue cupcake labeled _Happy._ She looked up as they approached, looking confused. "Yesh?" She mumbled through frosting. Monika stopped in front of her, eyes bright. "That was amazing!"

The girl laughed awkwardly, attempting to hide behind a curtain of wavy, carrot colored hair. "Thanks? I just figured if no one else was gonna do it…" Natsuki snorted, placing her hands on her hips. "Oh please, you've obviously done this before." The girl raised an eyebrow, crumpling her cupcake wrappers. "Sure, a couple of times for contests."

Sayori nodded enthusiastically, and being Sayori, got straight to the point. "You should join the Literature Club! We've been looking for new members and you're so, so, so, so, so good at poetry!" She clasped the girl's hands, which made her draw back in surprise.

"Y-yeah, sure." She retracted her hands, nervously tapping them on her thighs. Yuri could relate, she wasn't a fan of Sayori's hyperactivity all the time either. With that thought, Yuri stepped forward with a smile. "We'll be glad to have you. My name is Yuri, and this is Sayori, Monika, Natsuki, and M.C." The girl nodded, face returning to a neutral state.

"I'm Misaki. It's nice to meet you all." She met Yuri's eyes and gave her a small smile. Yuri blushed in embarrassment, unaccustomed to direct eye contact. It may have sounded silly, but Yuri was used to keeping her head down when she spoke, and preferably shoved in a book.

"U-Um yes, nice to meet you, Misaki."

* * *

 ** _This came out faster than I expected, thanks to a surprise snow-day! Also, Misaki is adorably awkward and I love her. Thanks for all the support on this one, I hope to get the next chapter out by this weekend._**


	4. Minds Intertwine

**Chapter Three**

The door loomed imposingly in front of Misaki, bearing down on her with the weight of thousands of uncertainties. Was she really certain that she wanted to do this? Misaki pressed her lips into a thin line, drawing in a deep breath through her nose. Exhaling slowly, she pushed the door open.

Inside, her new fellow club members were absorbed in their individual hobbies. M.C. was talking with Sayori, who giggled nervously from time to time. Natsuki popped in and out of the closet, carrying a box filled with colorful manga. Monika stood at the front of the room, eyes locked on something ahead of her. Upon further inspection, it seemed that she was watching Sayori and M.C. as they talked. Yuri sat at a desk by herself, nose buried into a book with a large eye on the cover. Misaki momentarily lost concentration as she appraised it, until a voice snapped her back to her surroundings.

"Misaki! For a second there, I thought you weren't coming! I'm so glad you made it." Monika had noticed her enter. Her green eyes glinted with an odd, almost suspicious light, but Misaki supposed that was because Monika thought she'd gone back on her word. Wanting to ease her mind, Misaki nodded.

"Sorry, my English teacher held me late. She wanted to talk about my performance at the festival…" She smiled meekly and moved to sit down. Yuri suddenly raised her head. "Huh…? Oh, Misaki! You came!" She smiled excitedly. Natsuki snickered from the back of the room. "Watch out, she totally wants to dissect your poem from yesterday." Yuri blushed a deep red and hid her face. "I-I just wanted to…I mean…I didn't mean to…"

Misaki gazed at her calmly, the newness of the situation wearing off enough that she could resume her usual reserved nature. "You wanted to see what my inspiration was, right? Of course, I'd love to explain it to you, it's not often anyone asks _why_ I wrote something." Yuri seemed to straighten and become more collected. "Yes, that's right. It's interesting to explore the mindset behind someone's writing."

"Oh, oh! I wanna know too!" Sayori suddenly chattered excitedly. Misaki internally winced as the loud voice assaulted her eardrums, but she had to smile at her chipper demeanor. Although, she couldn't help but notice an underlying tension in her face…Misaki's thoughts were once again interrupted by a voice. "Yeah, Yuri can't be the only one who gets to hear our new member's inspiration!" Natsuki said, grinning mischeviously. Monika and M.C. nodded, glancing at each other with looks that said they were embarrassed by the bold request.

And so, Misaki began to tell them of the inspiration behind her poem. She felt her chest fill with emotion as she spoke about what had made her write them, a sort of elation that came from revealing your inner thoughts without hesitation or fear. The others nodded and asked questions about nearly everything, eager to listen.

At some point, everyone else began to pitch in with their own inspirations and ideas, until it felt as though their thoughts were intertwining with Misaki's own to form a new picture, inky black words on pale colored paper. Without thinking, Misaki's pencil began scratching at a sheet of paper that she didn't recall taking out. Her subconscious was hazily aware of the others doing the same, words becoming lines on paper, emotions becoming ideas and metaphors.

Suddenly it was over, clarity crashing over Misaki like cold water. She gazed at the other members, happily chattering away, creating and erasing words on paper. Hazel eyes clashed with violet as Yuri looked up, finished with her own poem. She startled and looked away, before smiling hesitantly and turning to M.C. Natsuki also looked up, smirking.

"I betcha my poem is better than all of yours! How does it feel to be in the presence of a true master of poetry?" She lifted her chin smugly. Misaki smiled wearily. "It is an honor, Natsuki." Natsuki flinched and turned bright red at the statement, looking away. "Y-yeah, well d-don't get the idea that this means we're friends now! You've still got to earn that right!" Um, okay?

Monika suddenly jolted out of her chair. "Ah, it's time to go already! And we didn't even share our poems today!" She looked stricken. M.C. met her eyes with a laugh. "I think this was even better, probably. And there's always tomorrow." Monika nodded slowly, caving into the reassurance. "Yeah, okay. Tomorrow."

Misaki nodded and stood, collecting her things. Yuri suddenly tugged at her sleeve. "Um…I thought I saw you looking at this when you can in." She shyly motioned to her book. "It's called Portrait of Markov, i-if you were wondering…! And M.C. finished the other copy I had, so if you want to…read it?" She suddenly seemed unsure of herself, like she hadn't quite thought this through.

"Oh, yeah, that'd be great! It looks super interesting! Thanks so much, I promise I'll take good care of it." Misaki accepted the book, putting slightly more excitement into her voice than she usually would in an attempt to ease Yuri's mind. Yuri smiled brightly, seeming elated. "Okay! Oh, and I really liked hearing about the inspiration behind your poem, it's really interesting to see what motivates you." Suddenly she turned red and startled slightly. "Ah! I didn't mean to come on too strongly, I was just excited!"

Misaki grinned and giggled. "No, it's okay. I thought your motivations were cool too." She waved to the purple-haired girl and then turned towards the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Monika watching her with the intensity of someone who knew a secret.

 **Okay, I know this was wayyyyy longer than expected, but life does what life wants and also I procrastinate too much. Here's a chapter about the Literature Club bonding over the inspiration behind their poems and a look into the mind of Misaki!**


End file.
